New Delhi, The Supreme Court of India has temporarily stayed a decision by the Allahabad High Court that had annulled the UP Board of Madrasa Education Act, 2004, effectively safeguarding the operational status of approximately 16,000 madrassas in Uttar Pradesh under the existing legislation.
According to Kashmir Media Service, the stay was granted by a bench headed by the Chief Justice of India, DY Chandrachud, who expressed preliminary concerns over the correctness of the high court’s ruling. The Supreme Court has subsequently issued notices to the Uttar Pradesh and central governments, as well as the Madrasa board, seeking their responses on the matter.
The Allahabad High Court’s judgment last month, which deemed the 2004 law unconstitutional on grounds of violating secular principles, had prompted directives for the integration of madrasa students into the mainstream educational system. However, the Supreme Court’s intervention highlights a consideration that the objectives behind the Madrasa Board’s establishment are fundamentally regulatory and do not infringe upon the principles of secularism.